Fitocracy App Delivers Tools to Help Take Workouts to the Next Level

Fitocracy has been running a browser-based Web app that allows users to post physical activities and to compare their workout to what their friends are doing. Now, Fitocracy has gone mobile, allowing users to post their activities on their mobile devices anytime, anywhere.

The 250,000 registered users of Fitocracy log their fitness activities online, working to get to a new level, to earn Fitocracy badges or to rank on a leaderboard. Users can join groups dedicated to specific activities and can track their friends’ progress online.

With the mobile app, users will have more flexibility. “You can see how many points you’ve gotten and how many points you need to get to the next level,” Fitocracy Co-Founder Richard Talens said. “It motivates you when you’re at the gym. If you have to run another half of a mile to reach the next level, you'll do it.”

Logging activity via mobile device allows users to track their workouts as they complete them, to check leaderboards and to look up exact steps for “quests.” For example, users can complete a quest called “Paperboy,” which tells users to “take a ride around your neighborhood. If you hit a trashcan make sure you sprint away from that lady with the knife and rabid dog.” Ideally, users completing the quest would bike for 20 minutes and sprint for half a mile.

Many fitness enthusiasts find that posting their workouts publicly motivates them to succeed. Many weight loss programs and exercise tracking websites feature a social media integration that helps users to make their fitness story public. Fitocracy’s mobile website, while making workouts easier to track, did not create support for social features. Users still had to go back to the Fitocracy website to look up their points and their ranking.

By going mobile with social features, Fitocracy expects to generate explosive growth. According to Talens, users have logged over two million activities to the Fitocracy website, and they expect explosive growth from the mobile upgrade.

Fitocracy’s new app does integrate with RunKeeper, allowing users to track activities simultaneously on both of the apps.